Class began with a brief discussion of how to pull leg patterns from photos using SketchUp, then the class made patterns and began their legs. After layout, everyone took turns at the band saws so they were immediately plunged into leg work. In expectation of the legs taking two days to wrap up, head schoolmaster Bob Van Dyke arranged a trip to the Connecticut Historical Society (CHS) for Tuesday afternoon. (If you haven’t had the opportunity to visit CHS, do yourself a favor and do so. The staff is first rate and CHS is very reproduction-craftsman friendly.) If you plan to build this lowboy from the article in Popular Woodworking Magazine (February 2014, #209), I suggest that you take an extra 1/8″ off the leg pattern before you begin. When I saw the original lowboy at CHS for the second time, I realized that the legs on the antique lowboy were much finer, giving it a lightness that I missed while sizing from the many photos I had.

After the legs were shaped so far, a trip to the lathe was in order. Turning the feet and pad took a long time for the class – seven class members was 28 individual feet to turn. Everyone survived without problems, Right Jon? Here you can see Janice using pair of outside calipers to bring the foot to diameter. In all we used two caliper setups and only four or five basic turning tools. And it was nice to have a variable-speed lathe to work on; there’s a lot of wobble when you first turn the leg to shape the foot.

From the lathe the next step was to mortise the legs for the aprons, back and ends. While this work can be done while the leg is still as a blank, I think it’s better to actually see what the leg looks like before making a call as to where it will fit. After the legs are shaped, you can easily see which legs look best – those go to the front, while others move to the back. We had two mortisers setup and working, plus I demonstrated how to use a plunge router to do the work. Of the seven taking the class, only one used a plunge router for his mortises. (It’s great during classes to use tools you don’t have in your shop, as long as you know how to do the work when you’re at home.) One additional hint is to make sure that you’re cutting to the necessary depth – a couple of woodworkers had to make a return trip to the mortiser. Sorry I didn’t catch that sooner Mike.

By Wednesday everyone had knocked out the remaining outside case pieces and the lowboys were beginning to take shape. Jon spent extra time on his legs – he also noticed the finer look of the lowboy at CHS. After cutting the designs for the ends and front apron, we worked on bending the cock bead. I was happy that the bends for the longer end-panel beads went so well. Most everyone got those pieces bent using a soaked piece of wood and a heat guy set on high – if you take your time, you can feel the wood give up as it melts into position. If you apply the heat for a bit longer, you actually set the bend just as if you left a steamed piece in the mold until it dried. Smaller, tighter pieces were made using a router with a specifically paired guide bushing and router bit. (Read the article to learn the setup.)

Work on the inside of the lowboy went smooth, aside from the occasional misplaced screw pocket. There were a couple of hand-cut dovetail sockets that needed attention, but overall the class breezed through the interiors. As the cases were coming along, the lowboy tops came into focus. A little router work was all that was needed. It took, however, two passes around the top to get the profile complete. And with this project, the profile continued on all four edges; I checked the original lowboy to make sure. Many tops from the period are molded only on three edges.

Late of Friday and most of Saturday, drawers were the topic at hand. Of the seven in the class, three decided to build the drawers with the slanted sides and back – a challenging task even if you’re experienced in dovetail work. As you may have guessed from the opening photo, not all the drawers were completed during the class. As it is with many classes, there is homework. Also, most of the class members decided not to glue up their lowboys. Flat-packing the pieces home is much easier than trying to cram a lowboy into the back seat.

The class went great. I worked with a lot of talented woodworkers. I’m amazed at how good many of the folks are who take classes. If they had more time in the shop, their work could easily rival many of the top woodworkers in the country. Take a class. It’s fun and it’s sure to improve your woodworking.

8 responses to “A Teaching Week”

Glen, can you describe the “heat guy” used to bend the cock bead moldings used on the bottom of the case? I know this was described, but I am looking for my Pop Wood issue #209 which I cannot seem to find!
Thanks.

I used an inexpensive heat gun – a $23 Wagner that tops out at 1,000°. A hotter gun would make things easier, but with patience you can get the job done. I would caution that there were many broken pieces at the school and in my shop. Also, I soaked the strips in water and glycerin for about 24 hours prior to bending.

Thank you Glen, and I sure wish I could have been there! How thin is the molding? How much glycerine did you use? Also, would a steamer be another option? I used to make windsors and still have my old steam rig (Mike Dunbar’s set-up: schedule 40 PVC, radiator hose to connect to a gas can of water which sits on a lobster boiler – worked beautifully).

We made the molding 3/32″in thickness, or slightly less than 1/8″. I determined the amount of glycerine the way my Mom used to cook – I simply added what I thought would help. I think it turned out to be about 2 ounces in a gallon of water. Steaming the molding is way better, but to set up the steam pot for a few sticks of molding seems like overkill when this method works if you take your time.

Glen, In the photos, the tops seem to be a different color than the sides, and fronts, which on the original are cherry, are the tops also cherry? also in one of the photos it appears that pine was used for the back panels. was that how the original was constucted? Or is it just an optical seclusion?

All the tops are cherry, which looks different from the case because they are laid horizontal. All the attendees used tiger maple legs except for one – that’s how the antique piece was built, too. And yes, the backs and secondary wood was pine for the class, but the original had poplar as its secondary.